Medigap Guaranteed Issue Rights by State: When You Can Switch Plans With No Health Questions

Medigap (also called Medicare Supplement insurance) helps pay the costs Original Medicare leaves to you. Guaranteed issue is a legal right. It means an insurance company must sell you a Medigap plan. The company cannot say no or charge you more because of your health. Federal law gives you this right only at set times. The first is a 6-month open enrollment period — one stretch when you can buy any plan with no health questions. The others are a short list of special cases with 63-day windows. Your state may add much more. As of July 14, 2026, 15 states have a yearly “birthday rule.” Each year, around your birthday, these states give you a window to switch plans with no health questions. The rules for changing Medigap plans are different in each state. Use the tool below to see your state’s rules.

Tap a state to see the details of its new or upcoming rule.

Which Medigap plan should you start with?

You get one six-month window to buy any Medigap plan with no health questions. It starts the first month you have Medicare Part B and are 65 or older. After that, switching gets harder. Some states give you a yearly window to switch with no health questions. Even then, most windows only let you get the same plan again, or one that leaves you more bills. Want a plan later that pays bills your current plan does not? In most states, that means a health review. A company can say no or charge more. Two states are different. In Connecticut and New York, you can get any plan at any time, with no health questions. A few other states go part of the way. Use the tool above to see your state’s rules.

So your first choice matters. For people new to Medicare since 2020, Plan G is the plan we recommend and sell. With Plan G, you pay one set medical bill each year: the Medicare Part B deductible. After that, Plan G pays your share of the rest of your covered care. Starting with Plan G keeps the most options open later. Many healthy people can still pass a health review later. So Plan G helps most if your health changes down the road.

A lower premium may fit you better. Plan N costs less each month. In return, you pay a small set fee for some doctor and emergency room visits. For healthy people who do not expect to switch, Plan N can be the better value. High-deductible Plan G is the same Plan G coverage for a much lower premium. You pay your own medical bills first, up to $2,950 in 2026.

In Wisconsin, plans are not sold by letter, so there is no Plan G there. The same is true in Minnesota and in Massachusetts. This page names the plan to start with in each of the three.

What Medigap rights does federal law give everyone?

Federal law gives everyone one 6-month open enrollment period and seven guaranteed issue cases with 63-day windows. These rights apply in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and the U.S. territories — no matter what your state adds.

What is the one-time, 6-month Medigap open enrollment period?

Federal law gives you one 6-month Medigap open enrollment period. It starts the first month you have Medicare Part B and are 65 or older. During these 6 months, a company must sell you any plan it offers in your state. It cannot turn you down or charge you more because of your health. One catch: if you had a recent gap in coverage, the company can make you wait up to 6 months before it pays for a health problem you already had. This window does not repeat each year. After it ends, a company can say no or charge more — unless a guaranteed issue right or a state rule protects you.

What are the seven federal guaranteed issue situations?

If you lose certain coverage through no fault of your own, companies must sell you specific plans. They cannot turn you down or charge extra. Almost every case runs on the same clock: apply no later than 63 days after your coverage ends. Often you can apply up to 60 days early. If you miss the window, the right is gone.

• Your Medicare Advantage plan is leaving Medicare or leaving your area — or you move away from its service area. You must be going back to Original Medicare.
  You can buy: Plan A, B, D, G, K, or L from any company in your state. You can also pick Plan C or Plan F if you were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020.
  ⏱ Apply up to 60 days before your coverage ends, and no later than 63 days after it ends.
• You have Original Medicare plus a job, retiree, union, or COBRA health plan that pays after Medicare — and that coverage is ending. (COBRA is a law that lets you keep a job health plan for a while after you leave.)
  You can buy: Plan A, B, D, G, K, or L from any company in your state. You can also pick Plan C or Plan F if you were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020.
  ⏱ Apply within 63 days of the latest of these: the day the coverage ends, the date on the notice that it will end, or the date on a denied claim. If you have COBRA, you can buy now — or wait and get this right again when COBRA runs out.
• You have a Medicare SELECT policy — a Medigap type that uses network hospitals — and you move out of its service area.
  You can buy: Plan A, B, D, G, K, or L from any company in your state, or in the state you move to. Plan C or Plan F if you were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020.
  ⏱ Apply up to 60 days before your coverage ends, and no later than 63 days after it ends.
• Trial right: you joined a Medicare Advantage plan (or PACE, a full-care program for older adults) when you first got Medicare at 65. Within your first year, you decide to go back to Original Medicare.
  You can buy: Any Medigap plan sold in your state, from any company.
  ⏱ You can leave the plan any time in your first 12 months. Apply up to 60 days before your coverage ends, and no later than 63 days after it ends.
• Trial right: you dropped a Medigap policy to try Medicare Advantage (or Medicare SELECT) for the first time. Less than a year has passed, and you want to switch back.
  You can buy: Your old policy, if the same company still sells it. If it had drug coverage, you get it back without the drug part. If the policy is gone, you can buy Plan A, B, D, G, K, or L from any company.
  ⏱ Apply up to 60 days before your coverage ends, and no later than 63 days after it ends.
• Your Medigap company goes bankrupt, or your coverage ends through no fault of your own.
  You can buy: Plan A, B, D, G, K, or L from any company in your state. You can also pick Plan C or Plan F if you were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020.
  ⏱ Apply within 63 days after your coverage ends. There is no early window in this case.
• You leave a Medicare Advantage plan, or drop a Medigap policy, because the company broke the rules or misled you.
  You can buy: Plan A, B, D, G, K, or L from any company in your state. You can also pick Plan C or Plan F if you were eligible for Medicare before January 1, 2020.
  ⏱ Apply within 63 days after your coverage ends.

One more note if you live in Wisconsin, Minnesota, or Massachusetts. Those three states use their own plan types instead of letters. Your federal rights still work in these states. Each state wrote those rights into its own rules, using its own plans. In Wisconsin, the company must sell you its basic plan. You can add any rider the company offers. A rider is an extra benefit. In Minnesota, the company must sell you its Basic Plan. You can also add any of the standard extra riders. One case is wider. Did you join a Medicare Advantage plan when you first signed up? If you leave it in the first 12 months, you can get any plan the company sells. In Massachusetts, the company must sell you each plan it offers. That includes the Core Plan and Supplement 1A. One limit is the same in all three states. Did you first get Medicare in 2020 or later? Then you cannot buy a plan or rider that pays the Part B deductible.

What are the two trial rights for trying Medicare Advantage?

• Medicare Advantage trial right: You joined a Medicare Advantage plan when you first got Medicare at 65. You can drop it any time in your first 12 months, go back to Original Medicare, and buy any Medigap plan sold in your state — no health questions.
  ⏱ First 12 months in the plan. Apply up to 60 days before coverage ends and up to 63 days after.
• Medigap trial right: You dropped a Medigap policy to try Medicare Advantage for the first time. Within 12 months, you can switch back. You get your old policy again if the company still sells it. If not, you can buy Plan A, B, D, G, K, or L from any company.
  ⏱ Less than 12 months in the plan. Apply up to 60 days before coverage ends and up to 63 days after.

What does federal law not give you — and who can buy Plan C or Plan F?

Federal law is only a floor. It gives you no yearly right to buy or switch Medigap. Your 6-month open enrollment period happens once and never repeats. Medicare's yearly fall sign-up period (October 15 to December 7) does not apply to Medigap. Outside your protected windows, companies in most states can ask health questions. They can turn you down, delay coverage, or charge more. Federal law also does not make companies sell Medigap to people under 65. State rules fill these gaps. That is what the state lookup above shows you.

Who can buy Plan C or Plan F: Plan C and Plan F pay the Part B deductible, and plans sold to newer members cannot do that. So if your Medicare eligibility began on or after January 1, 2020, no company can sell you Plan C or Plan F. You get the right to buy Plan D or Plan G instead, in the same situations. If you were eligible before 2020 — even if you signed up later — you can still buy Plan C or Plan F where they are sold.

Sources

• Medicare.gov — When can I buy a Medigap policy?
• Choosing a Medigap Policy — the official government guide
• 42 U.S. Code section 1395ss — the federal Medigap law
• State insurance departments and state laws — linked in each table row above
• State Health Insurance Assistance Program — free Medicare help

The state rules on this page are for information only. They are current as of July 14, 2026, and they can change. Before you make a coverage choice, check with your state insurance department, the State Health Insurance Assistance Program (shiphelp.org, 1-877-839-2675), or 1-800-MEDICARE (TTY: 711).